


too close to the furnace

by crookedspoon



Series: BruJay Week 2020 [1]
Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Age Difference, Guilt, M/M, No Sex, POV Bruce Wayne, Pedophilia, Temptation, Underage Prostitution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-28
Updated: 2020-02-28
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:28:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22944796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crookedspoon/pseuds/crookedspoon
Summary: Bruce is trying to provide a stable home for Jason. Jason doesn't know the meaning of stable.Sequel togotta finish what you shouldn't have started(explicit underage brujay).
Relationships: Jason Todd/Bruce Wayne
Series: BruJay Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1649041
Comments: 15
Kudos: 92
Collections: BruJay Week 2020





	too close to the furnace

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Day 7 "Age Difference" at brujayweek 2020.

Jason was a good kid. Bruce had never doubted that. His past was of no import in that regard, nor was the fact that he had been in the process of stealing the tires off the Batmobile when they first met. This crime-in-action was, after all, just a minor infraction when stacked against the sin that Bruce was guilty of that night. The sin he would never be able to erase from his conscience.

Bruce had been no better than the other adults in Jason's life, and for that Bruce is deeply ashamed. He should have been better. He should have been able to protect Jason from his baser urges. Their existence did not give him the right to act on them, no matter how much Jason normalized them and told him he wanted it.

("Come on, Bruce. Don't be that way. I thought this is why you took me in. Do you want me to beg for it, is that it? Okay, fine. I'm on my knees, Bruce. Give me _something._ Don't just ignore me. Hey! Where are you going? Wait!")

Like all the other adults in Jason's life, Bruce had failed Jason. That was on him.

He had meant to fix things by taking Jason out of that life. By giving him opportunities he otherwise would not have had. Training, an education, the possibility of scholarships – in short, a whole different trajectory to the path he was on.

But the path he was on was a well-trodden one and not easily abandoned.

It was as if Jason could not help but rile up Bruce. The way his voice dipped low and suggestive when he thought Alfred could not hear, the way he grinned at Bruce, expectantly, when he stretched or Bruce had him pinned on the mat, the way he _moved,_ narrow hips swinging from side to side, almost hypnotic -- Bruce wanted to grab them just to hold them still, so he would not have to see them tempting him so. But then Jason would be squirming in his lap, deliberately or not, it didn't matter. It all seemed designed to make Bruce falter.

And it would be so easy to just give in. Jason already knew about Bruce's unwholesome desires and was ready to give him what he needed, as he liked to point out.

"I don't get it," Jason said when Bruce declined Jason's offer to fellate him over dinner for the fifth time that week. "You want me. I want you. Why do you still have to agonize about it? I mean, goddamnit, we already fucked, so--"

"Language, Jason."

"Fine, sorry." The boy threw up his hands as he moved back to his seat. "Call it what you will--"

"It was a mistake."

"A mistake I wouldn't mind doing again."

"I would."

"Come on. Face it, old man. Can't unpop that cherry. But you can damn well make use of it." Jason slipped a forkful of peas into his mouth, smiling around the tines.

"Don't talk that way."

"Why not? If you're concerned about my quote-unquote _innocence,_ don't be. It's not like you're gonna corrupt me or anything. I was already damaged goods long before you arrived on the scene."

Jason jumped when Bruce's fist slammed so hard that Jason's plate rattled against the table, despite sitting several feet away from him. "I said, don't talk that way."

"Okay," Jason muttered, gaze down. "Geez. No need to lose your temper over it."

"You are _not_ damaged goods." Bruce stood. "You are a young person with a lot of potential."

"Okay," Jason said again, frowning as Bruce approached. Frowning and defensive. _What had been done to this kid. He's loud-mouthed and seemingly grown-up one moment, then cringing and steeling himself as if for a blow the next._

Bruce rounded his shoulders forward to make himself appear less threatening. It was all but impossible with his build and Jason's knowledge of the man behind the billionaire playboy facade.

He knelt in front of Jason's chair to be of level height with him.

"I'm trying to give you a normal life."

"You're a billionaire who beats up criminals while dressed up as a bat. How's that for normal?" 

For all his genuine surprise, at least Jason was relaxing against the back of his chair again, no longer intimidated by Bruce's display of anger. Bruce counted that as progress.

"Now, my life?" Jason continued with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Run off the mill, trust me. Gotham is littered with strays like me." 

After a beat, Jason smirked, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"I just happened to provide a niche fantasy to just the right guy."

Bruce's breathing deepened as the boy leaned forward, his lips close enough to touch. They looked softer now that Bruce had taken him in, tempting Bruce to swipe his thumb over them to confirm -- or his tongue, to taste.

It would be so easy to repeat the mistake of that night. But Jason was a good kid and deserved an environment free of abuse. He deserved to learn that he was worth more than what his body had to offer.

Bruce stood to distance himself from the temptation. Jason looked stricken.

"Do you think I'm disgusting?" he asked in a quiet voice, seeking but unable to hold Bruce's gaze for long.

"No, I don't think that."

"Then why...? I have needs, too, you know?"

A shiver ran down Bruce's spine as he turned. _It could be so easy._ "You are free to explore them within your own age group."

Jason snorted. "They're all _kids."_

"So are you."

Bruce could practically feel the glower directed at his back. It was a small price to pay to keep Jason safe.

"You liked it," Jason called after him.

Bruce had. That was the shameful truth. It was also the root of the problem of this whole arrangement.

Bruce steadfastly ignored Jason's advances, but for how long? Resisting the temptation required a tremendous amount of discipline, especially since his thoughts were no longer a safe space.

Indulging in his sick fantasies with Dick by playing them out in his head had been helpful. Fooling himself into thinking he had already partaken of the forbidden fruit sated his hunger for it for some time. 

But unlike Jason, Dick had been an inexperienced child, driven by desperation as much as desire. His attempts at seducing Bruce had been fumbling and sweet and therefore easily brushed aside. Jason, on the other hand, knew what he was doing. His sexuality was not a foreign part of himself that he had yet to explore -- he already knew how it worked and so could use it to his advantage. That made him seem more grown-up than he actually was.

Brushing aside Jason's attempts at seduction, however, did not have the desired effect of getting him to quit. Instead of imparting a sense of comfort and security, Bruce did the opposite: he pushed Jason back on the streets in Crime Alley.

That was where he found him one night, looking rather bored bent over the hood of a car, his knock-off Robin panties riding into the ridge of his ass and exposing his pale cheeks to the indifferent air, as he let a stranger mark his skin with their semen. All for a handful of dollars.

Bruce could not remain indifferent. He broke at least one bone in the man's body that night.

"Gee, thanks for that," Jason grouched as he squirreled away the crumpled bills under his tunic as if afraid Bruce was going to take them from him. Both of their attention was on the unconscious form at their feet. "After this I'll be lucky if anyone still wants anything to do with me."

"You don't have to do this anymore," Bruce said automatically. He had been repeating this phrase so often -- as a reminder to himself to stay firm as well as a mantra to ward off Jason's advances -- that it sounded hollow by now.

"It's what I know." Jason gazed at him evenly, sincerely.

"It doesn't have to be all that you know." Anger was still simmering in his veins, but it was a tightly contained anger at a very specific target. _(How dare this predator touch_ his _Robin?)_ None of it was directed at Jason. "If your allowance is not enough, you can just tell me."

"Allowance is fine," Jason said, kicking at the ground. "Too much even."

"Then why are you here?"

Jason shrugged. "Feels wrong to just take it, along with everything else. Besides, at least _they_ appreciate me. What I can do."

"I appreciate you."

"Yeah, but you don't let me earn my keep." The accusation in Jason's tone hurt him. It hurt him that in Jason's mind, Bruce's continued refusal amounted to the same as punishment. "It would be so much easier for the both of us if you just let me blow you every once in a while, you know? Might even help you relax, wind down a little. It's not that big of a deal."

"It's a big deal to me."

"Figures." Jason scrubbed a hand through his curly hair and expels a breath. "Why do I even bother running after you?"

The boy moved away, straightening his panties over his plump ass as he did so.

"Jason, wait!"

"I get it, okay?" Jason said, throwing up his hands and turning around without stopping, walking backwards. "You feel guilty for what you think you _did_ to me. It's tearing you apart inside. But you forget that I wanted it as much as you did. Maybe more. I'm sorry for having pushed you into it. I'll be out of your hair now."

Jason spun on his heel again, continuing on his path that would lead him away from Bruce.

"What about Robin?"

Jason stopped. "What about him?"

"Do you want to walk away from that, too?"

"You won't have to feel guilty so much when I'm not around."

"You're a good partner in the field. I'd hate to lose that."

"Okay, but what if I screw up?" Jason asked. "What if I disappoint you? What if you grow _bored_ of me, your latest little pet project, and I end up back on the street anyway?"

"Is that what you're afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid," Jason said stiffly, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I'm just preparing for that eventuality."

Bruce walked up to Jason and placed his hands on the boy's shoulders, turning him to look him in the eyes. "You are not a pet I rescued from the shelter, Jason. You are my son. Nothing that you do or don't do will make me kick you out. I promise you that."

Jason frowned up at him. "Is that why you won't fuck me? Because you think I'm your son?"

Bruce disregarded his word choice this time. "That, and because I meant it when I said you don't have to do that anymore."

"But you want to," Jason protested. " _I_ want to."

"You're a minor, Jason."

"Fuck that. It's never stopped anyone before--"

"Language."

"--so you don't have to start out of some stupid moral reason or some shit."

Bruce did not want to talk about any of this out here anymore. "Let's go home. Alfred is worried about you."

"Fine," Jason acquiesced and let himself be herded to the car. "I'm freezing my balls off anyway."

The ride home started off in silence. Bruce had to keep himself from reaching over and touching Jason's bare knee just above where he scuffed it. Dirt and debris was clinging to the raw skin. They would have to-- _Jason_ would have to clean it when he washed off the other man's dried semen. Bruce gripped the steering wheel harder at the thought.

"Tell me honestly," Jason said after a while. "Do you want me at all?"

Bruce said nothing. Anything at all would be damning.

"It's him you want, isn't it? The other Robin?"

"Leave him out of it."

"It's starting to make sense, you know?" Jason pulled his knees to his chest. "That night. You didn't know me then. It was easier to pretend I was him. Now you know me better. You claim to think of me as your son. That makes it harder. But the truth is, I don't mind. I don't mind if you want to think of him when you fuck me."

"Jason..."

"No, don't 'Jason' me. You don't understand. I can't stay with you and just accept everything you give me as a gift. That's not how this works. You've gotta let me do something."

If Bruce were a man any less acquainted with hardship he would have wished for Jason to let this go already. But reciprocating was obviously important to Jason and no amount of wishing was going to change that.

"There's school," he said. "There's your Robin training. You can pay me back by excelling at those things."

Jason threw his back against the seat. "You really don't want me, do you?"

Bruce thinned his lips and flexed his fingers around the steering wheel. "I told you: you're my son. I don't expect anything from you in return, but if it's something you need to do, you can start there."

"I'd much rather start by sucking your cock."

"Jason," Bruce's warning tone would have made alarm bells go off in anyone's head. Jason only seemed defeated.

"I know," he sighed and clasped his hands behind his head. "Language."

A couple of tense heartbeats passed before Bruce spoke again. He sounded raw even to his own pounding ears. His blood was boiling.

"Promise me--" He licked his lips and tried again. "Promise me you won't go out there anymore and do what you did tonight." 

"You mean solicit business?" Jason's laugh was startled, but then his voice took on a more teasing edge. "If _you'll_ be my sugar daddy. I'll be all yours."

Bruce's mouth was too dry to answer. He concentrated on the road ahead as if the Batmobile didn't drive on autopilot back to the Cave and ignored the way his suit was beginning to grow tight. _All mine._

"Fine. I promise," Jason burst out, unable to stand Bruce's lack of a reaction. "But think about it. I could make you feel so good. I _want_ to make you feel so good."

Bruce would have to find new methods to steel his resolve. Otherwise he would be thinking of nothing else but Jason's silky-soft mouth sliding up and down his shaft. How wonderful and good he had felt. How tight but welcoming his body had been. And how easily Bruce could have all of that again.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from "Sometimes" by Nick Lutsko.


End file.
